Oh man! I haven't reviewed Cheap Thrills!?? What the f*ck have I been doing with my life…read more When you feel like your soul is being eaten by downtown, by the spinning glass buildings, the endless construction, the pushing consumerism and tourists of St Catherine's Street, please find your way to these narrow stairs. Cheap Thrills is right there for you, in the thick of it all, a living memory palace full of records and books, and quiet people deeply invested in these things and their history. A nice thing that happened to me here was that a very non-judgmental staff person chatted with me for a few minutes, didn't make me feel shitty for my spotty and partial music knowledge, and then casually introduced me to a record that I have loved and played on repeat through good and bad times, and that changed how I think about music, and basically changed my life (Judee Sill, Heart Food. A million stars.) Sometimes I am too shy to ask for recommendations in record stores but this experience was deeply positive, and my swelling record collection eating up my front hall will attest to that fact. The prices are fair, the quality is high. The organization is shifting and mysterious. All the more reason to plan to get lost, and then to find something totally unexpected.

My Montreal staple, first place I go when in town. Well second, I first get coffee. But this place…read moreis for sure second. I once got a skid row tape there in like 2015, but today I just dug around a little bit and found a Montreal doom metal album, and a Canadian press of Days of Future's Past. Sick. Great shop, great bunch of people working there, talking music. Have a lot of new vinyl as well. Some guy giving them low stars for parking, like maybe yelp the street instead.

I love this place. This has to be the most welcoming and cool record shop I've ever been to…read more The guys that work here are super nice and really know their stuff. They have a decent selection of music, but I go mostly to get tickets for shows. They sell the tickets for less than any other place in the city, not charging any fees. A place you definitely have to check out in Montreal!

Remember that bit in HIGH FIDELITY when Jack Black kicks a customer out of his store for asking…read moreabout a popular record? Well, the exact thing happened to me at Atom Heart. The clerk piled some serious attitude right on me, while I was with my baby daughter no less, and kicked us out for having the audacity to ask about a top-forty album on vinyl. It's a nice shop, beautifully designed, but unfortunately the Omega-level rudeness and condescension means I'll no longer be buying either records or concert tickets from them. Luckily L'Oblique is only a brisk walk away.

The staff were really helpful up until the point after i paid, spent almost 300$ in a used vinyl…read moreand it was shipped to me in a most inappropriate way, causing the album jacket to split, either they dont know how to ship vinyl properly or they dont care, and im going with they dont care cause they already got my money, i sent them a message on there website and i was just ignored, if you purchase vinyl from here be wary it will probably show up damaged

An absolutely wonderful record shop, with a very wide range of genres, and with excellent…read moreorganization. The prices are a little unpredictable, some things seemed way overpriced to me, yet other more unique and rare things seemed undervalued. So: lots of fun to look through, and some very high quality recordings, old, new, re-issues, and unique new vinyl. I only checked out classical and jazz, my loves, but the other sections seemed chock full and varied. Glad that stores like this still exist.

This place has been open since 2007, yet I'm still the first to review it! Don't you just love…read moresurprises? Wall to wall with old vinyls, this is an awesome place to go crate diving. Don't expect to find the rarest treasures, but best bet is that you won't walk away empty handed. It's also got a decent, English used books section, which is a rarity in the Plateau. Friendly service, good music, and excellent prices. I would strongly recommend checking it out!

Excellent! We were looking for 45s and we found hundreds. All kind of music and the owner is nice…read moreand helpful. next time in Montreal we're back there,

Beatnick had one of the better selections of records my partner and I encountered on our recent…read moretrip to Montreal. The space keeps unfolding you as walk through, revealing nooks and back spaces with more and more records. The selection is also good and well-organized. You don't have to wade through a lot of junk to find what you're looking for. I know that some people like to do that (ie, crate digging)--for those, I think there's enough flipping to keep them satisfied. Service was as I like it for record stores, which is hands-off. The one employee was at the register the entire time. He was polite when we checked out, but didn't bother or interact with us otherwise. And finally, on a pricing basis, I would say they are average. There's some deals for sure, but the owner also knows the relative value of the records pretty well. Happy hunting.

I recently checked out Beatnik during my first visit to Montreal. I was really pumped about…read morechecking out this shop thinking I would score some great stuff. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a let down. The liked the shop itself. Looked neat inside and out. The selection though was stuff you'd find anywhere. In my opinion there was a ton of filler and not nearly enough killer. Perhaps there's a huge country music crowd that shops here cause they've got a room with just that. Ehhh. They had lots of new vinyl, cassettes, and CDs too. I bought one record, but it took a bit of time finding something I was interested in. The used punk and metal section was very weak. There's definitely better shops in Montreal, but if you wanna see for yourself maybe it'll be more your kinda store than it was mine.

Came here the other night to watch the new redone documentary on The Clash with a buddy of mine…read morethough it wasn't my first time here. I came in two months ago to watch another documentary on EBM music with old-timers like Nitzer Ebb and Kraftwerk. Had a fantastic time on both occasions. BBAM! Gallery is turning out to be a great little creative space that is part record/vinyl store, art gallery and sometime art-house cinema showing Montreal-premieres of music oriented documentaries. I think the next one that's coming up that I'll probably attend is one on Paul Weller's bands, The Jam and The Style Council. Montreal used to have so many of these kinds of creative spaces but with skyrocketing rents and gentrification in almost all neighbourhoods, many of those spaces are disappearing all too quickly and there's only a handful left now and I think it's vital for the city to encourage keeping these kinds of independent spaces alive, where you can watch these great movies and get a glass of wine for $5, instead of another generic, sterile corporate space that charges you $20 per glass.

Great little shop with wonderful staff. Really enjoyed talking about current events and records.read more

It went way better than last time I went…read more I felt like the place was going downhill slowly. But I was surprised to see how well everything was this time around. The space is a fraction of what it used to be. But I feel like it's more currated and more accessible.

I am a thrifter and love finding local thrift shops whenever I'm on my travels...today we stumbled…read moreupon Eva B and it was such a delight Three words to describe this place: fun, quirky and nostalgic I was able to find a couple Disney vintage items and had so much fun combing the racks for more treasures. They have a wide selection and the items are well organized and maintained What's unique about this spot is they also have a cafe on the ground floor! My mom got a bowl of their soup and she gave it 2 big thumbs up ...the staff was also so welcoming and kind. If you're looking for a special place to see and shop while you're in Montreal, check out Eva B!

In an age of GPS and Google maps, I was truly surprised to find this place. And, truly delighted!…read moreImagine, an entire store dedicated to the international traveler, filled with books and maps detailing every worldwide destination you're thinking of exploring. There's something that feels so grounding and wondrous about unfolding a brand new map and spreading it out across a table, a floor, a bed or whatever spot is big enough, so that you can see all of your options in huge format at once. Staring at a tiny smartphone screen just does NOT compare. It's like being able to see your feet on the new terrain before you get there. And, remember: fold-out maps don't run out of battery. The last time I decided to drive across the continent from east coast to west coast, I had a hella time trying to find a paper map anywhere! Gas stations might carry maps of the local town or city, but good luck tracking down a full continental map anywhere. You could order a world map or full map online, but those aren't road maps for tossing into your car's glove box and hitting the road with - those are fancy wall maps. This place, however, has a fold-out map of every country, neatly stacked in boxes on the floor like old vinyl records, and shelves and shelves of guide books to go along with them, if you want a guide book too. My future plans include another epic road trip throughout the continental US and Canada, and now that I've got the glorious fold-out map, I can start planning my routes with highlighter in hand. Feeling adventurous? Check this place out for inspiration.

Beautiful new record shop on a stretch of Bernard that now boasts 3 excellent, different vinyl…read moredestinations!! Pop in and say HI to the friendly, non-record-snob owner Kris Guilty (formerly of Death of Vinyl) who is slowly setting up and filling the spot with love. There are amazing finds here already for DJs and people who love music, and a couple sweet little listening stations, and even a small café getting set up in the back. I can't wait to go back often, enjoy the comfortable vibe and find some new music to take home and love.

This store alone makes me wish I lived even closer to downtown. It feels huge (they have a piano…read morefor gosh sake haha). With multiple floors, you just KNOW you'll find something for you or a loved one here. And, it might not be a book. Puzzles, houseware, cute decorations, planners, pillows, blankets, cards, candles, ebook reader cases, the list really goes on and on. The staff were friendly and they seem accustomed to how busy it can get. With their communication system and their devices to look up/scan books, everything seems like a well-oiled machine here. As always for Indigo, they definitely have pricier books and book sets but they also have their sales wall (3/$15 etc). I can never say no to dropping into a bookshop and since it had been so long since my last visit, it felt really nice to look around this one.

The bookstore is huge and has an impressive selection of books across all kinds of genres. There's…read morealso a big section of staff picks, which I really enjoyed browsing--it made it easier to discover interesting titles I might not have found on my own. It's easy to lose track of time wandering through the shelves; I could easily spend the whole day there. The space feels welcoming and well-organized, making it a great spot for book lovers to explore and relax.